Ukraine has rejected an offer by Russia for Yulia Tymoshenko, the jailed former prime minister, to receive medical treatment in Moscow.

Russian President-elect Vladimir Putin had on Thursday offered to host the opposition leader in Russia for treatment after claims of abuse in detention.

Tymoshenko, 51, has been on a hunger strike since April 20 to protest her alleged beating by wardens in a prison where she is serving a controversial seven-year term for abuse of office - charges some say were politically motivated.

Putin made the offer in a bid to defuse the crisis that is putting pressure on the Ukraine ahead of it co-hosting next month's Euro 2012 football tournament with Poland.

But Putin has also rallied to his neighbour's defence by saying he disagreed with EU states' attempts to mix politics with sport.

Turton said the reaction to Putin was the same response the Ukrainian authorities gave to Germany after it also offered Tymoshenko medical attention there.

Germany, along with other countries including the UK and the Netherlands are considering a boycott of Euro 2012.

Politicians from Austria and Belgium have already said they would not attend, in protest of Tymoshenko's treatment by Kiev authorities.

European Commission chief Jose Manuel Barroso has also made a decision to skip the games,

In a statement released by its foreign ministry on Thursday, Ukraine said: "We view as destructive attempts to politicise sporting events, which since ancient times have played a paramount role in improving understanding and agreement between nations.

"An attack on this big dream undermines the chances of... all the former Socialist Bloc members to prove that their economic, human and scientific potential can turn them from the debtors of Europe to its engine of growth."

Poland has criticised Tymoshenko's imprisonment, with Donald Tusk, the prime minister, saying Ukraine's reputation will "suffer dramatically" if no humanitarian solution is found.

Tymoshenko's supporters meanwhile posted pictures of bruises on her stomach, saying they confirmed her claims of torture, images that were then reproduced by the media.

There have been reports that the presidents of Austria, the Czech Republic, Germany, Italy and Slovenia have rejected an invitation to the Ukrainian Summit of Central and Eastern leaders to be held in Yalta next week.